The Kingdom of Calatia
The Kingdom of Calatia is a domain on the southwest corner of Verden. It was founded by Selena Nadir, Rhiannon, and a company of close allies. Its primary goal is the destruction of the Empire of Koridai and the death or incapacitation of Koridai's leader, Chikara Nadir. History Following The Battle of Olimandias, Selena led a large number of survivors over the western pass of the Taj-Nar Mountains, seeking safety in the southlands. It was an arduous crossing, as no warriors had explored that section of the mountain range in previous years. High altitude blizzards dropped visibility to zero and, after weeks of wandering in the cold, Selena and her followers began to run low on supplies. The sick and elderly began to die from exposure, and all of them would have met with the same fate had the call of a wolf not caught Selena's attention. Trusting that there was shelter nearby if the wolf could live in such harsh conditions, Selena led her people toward the noise. She found a white wolf and its pack roaming the halls of an ancient castle. The most able bodied warriors dug out the thick entry doors and the entire group of survivors huddled inside to find warmth. Over the next few days, the castle was made into a functional camp. The people named it the Snowpeak Ruins after its location. When the weather improved and scouting of the region commenced, Selena found the rugged mountains to be an ideal defense against the larger armies of her rival. She decided that Snowpeak would be an ideal capital for her new domain. The Kingdom of Calatia was officially founded a few weeks after their arrival at the castle. She quickly put a plan in motion to get Calatia battle-ready and prepared for a potential invasion. It was decided that all citizens should be warriors, so military training became mandatory for all people living within Calatia's borders. Calatia began a great arms race with Koridai in preparation for the war, and Selena continued to organize her domain for optimal defense. Calatia was able to secure an alliance with the nation of Virrat on the continent of Komitaa. The period of cold war ended when Koridai attacked the Chasm of Wyrms, a Calatian supply route, and the proper war began. There have been no major battles yet. Although a state of warriors, Calatia does have decent entertainment when people have freetime. Skiing, sledding, and other winter recreational sports are common when weather is decent. Some sports have competitive teams for when the threat of war is not imminent. Through a complete accident, longship racing down the main face of Snowpeak was also discovered and is now practiced on a semi-frequent basis. Government Structure Much like The Labyrinth, Calatia was designed to have very little distinction between its ruling class and citizens. A quasi-monarchy was appointed by Selena in order to streamline government efficiency. All leaders were chosen due to their prior experience leading domains and/or because of their previous service history with Selena. The ruling class was intended to handle the necessary grunt work involved with running a domain and provide guidance and leadership for the people, not to dominate their citizens. In all cases where official duties were not required, the "royals" were to act as equals toward the citizens under their protection. - Queen Wisp was appointed to handle government duties and domestic affairs. - Princess Rhiannon was to handle military strategy and public relations. - Baron Showsni was responsible for research, logistics, and battle tactics. - Lady Rova was appointed to handle public morale (and mead stocks). - Selena's role would focus on military operations. Beyond the designation between leaders and citizens, there are no further class lines. Money is seldom used within Calatia's borders. Food, drinks, shelter and entertainment are paid for by the government. Citizens do not have large sums of individual wealth beyond their possessions. Military Structure Calatia exists as a warrior society, so military service is the primary focus of citizens. Selena made it very clear at the domain's foundation that Calatia was essentially an army with a capital city. All citizens fulfill some sort of military role, whether that's fighting on the front lines or boosting morale at home. Combat training and outdoor survival training are mandatory. Where Koridai is rigidly divided into branches and ranks like a true empire, Calatia is based upon Selena's flavor of Labyrinth warfare. There are no branches of service - only the "Calatian Military." The military is then divided into operational cells known as combat groups. A combat group is a flexible unit that can be altered on a whim to deal with changing war conditions. Combat groups range in size from a team of soldiers (specialist groups) to thousands of men (heavy assault groups). They can easily merge into a larger, single combat group for tougher battles or split into smaller teams for more discreet operations. Group leaders are appointed by Calatians ruling class as they see fit. All group leaders must excel at combat and show natural leadership abilities. As with the Labyrinth, natural leaders were determined easily based upon their interaction with their fellow soldiers during training and early operations. Soldiers do not flock to poor leaders. Seniority alone is not enough to make a warrior into a leader, and there are many instances of young upstarts becoming combat group leaders before hardened veterans. Group leaders only have authority over their own soldiers. The exception to this rule are the members of the ruling class, who have authority over all combat groups at once. However, the rulers usually respect the authority of their appointed group leaders. Popular combat groups would include: - The Snakeheads, led by Leo Crimson. They are considered a special operations group. - The Huscarls, led by Khallos. The Huscarls are elite frontline fighters - not at all discreet, but especially deadly. In addition to combat groups, Calatia also has warrior societies. These are not combat teams, but rather brotherhoods or sisterhoods of veteran warriors. Warrior societies provide their members with entertainment during break periods and are a way for citizens to bond. You must have served in the military for several months and must have killed at least five enemies before joining a warrior society. The two warrior societies of Calatia are presently The Berserkers (for men) and The Valkyries (for women). ("Calatia" is originally a land referenced in the Legend of Zelda comics back in the 80's. The domain was named in its honor, as per our forum tradition about naming domains after Zelda locations.) Category:Domains Category:Geography: Domains